I had to get creative for this song. There wasn't a single video of the audio OR live version of this song. So instead you get a lovely video of my blinds as the song plays through my speakers. This is "The Blue Rooftops" by Karen Peris. I can't stop listening to this song. The piano is so simple, but insanely beautiful. I love the way it was recorded. It sounds as though someone is playing the piano downstairs on some awesome vintage piano. I just can't get enough of it!
Hopefully this video works. Today I plan on bumming around a bit. I need to finish up some homework, and I'm thinking of going and exploring some local bookstores. Hope everyone is having an awesome Monday, and for a lot of you have a nice little break from school!
As I said yesterday, I have been on quite the Mumford & Sons kick. This actually happens quite frequently. I just love them. I missed them in concert last year which I was really bummed about, but hopefully I will catch them next time!
I also mentioned that yesterday was my dad's birthday! Whoo for birthdays! Here are some photos of the celebration.
For some reason our family has this fascination with pulling pranks on each other, especially when it comes to opening presents. Here is my dad opening the TAG to his actual gift. Haha
The actual gift.
Our family loves technology.
It was a fun day spending time with family, and we topped it all of with a chocolate eclair "cake." Yum! So happy birthday to the best dad out there! Like for real, I am not even joking.
So a lot of blogs that I follow have started doing a 52 week portrait project with their kiddies. You know, where they take a picture of their kids once a week for an entire year! Well I really wanted to be a part of it, but I do not have any children... dilemma? Absolutely not. I have decided instead I am going to do a weekly self portrait! Yay!
Here is my self portrait for this week. Super random, but I just had to hurry and snap it. Hopefully I will get a little more creative each week. I know I am a week late, but I don't think that matters. To tell you the truth I really wanted to do this because I want to see the evolution of my hair for a year. Should be interesting.
Lately I have been obsessed with Lana Del Ray. I know a lot of people don't like her voice, but I think it is interesting. I am also loving this acoustic version of this song. Big fan.
Today was the first day of spring semester, and it has already been a little insane. I think school and I just aren't destined to mix well. The day has already been full of awkward moments and unexpected turns. You know what I have to say to that?
BRING IT ON!
Here is to having a successful semester, and enough awkward moments to go around. I can't wait!
Here I am doing a Music Monday post on a Tuesday... again. Oops. It was New Year's Eve yesterday, so I am going to blame it on that.
The song I chose for this week is "Ain't No Rest For The Wicked" by Cage The Elephant. This is just one of those songs that every time I listen to it, it gets stuck in my head for a week. I love the sound of this song. I had never really paid attention to the lyrics of this song until this week though. They are very interesting. I like how they tell a story. There aren't many musicians that really write that way anymore. I think that is why I love this song so much.
Enjoy!
This was the best live version I could find. Honestly, he is kind of hard to watch. Haha So if you are like me and all the movement kind of drives you nuts, just close your eyes and enjoy. It is nice when you find out a band is actually good live. It is almost a relief.
I hope everyone had a fantastic New Year's Eve! My evening was not what I expected, but soo much fun. Anyone do anything crazy spectacular?
It is funny the songs you will come across when you put your ipod on shuffle. That is exactly how I came across "Holding On" by Scary Kids Scaring Kids, and boy was it a trip down memory lane. So two years ago I was dating a fella that was really into this music, so I really took a liking to it as well. Ever since then it kind of stuck. This was the second show I had EVER been to with this kind of music, and it just happened to be the Scary Kids Scaring Kids farewell show. Depressing I know. When you listen to this song you will most likely learn something you never knew about me. Yes, I still like this music. I don't listen to it all that often, but it holds a very special place in my heart. Every once in a while I get in the mood to listen to this music, and I am currently in one of those moods. It has been fantastic.
So because it only happens every once in a while I don't have too much music like this. Anyone have any recommendations of bands like this?? Anything would be fantastic. Please don't think differently of me when you hear this. I promise it is good!
This live video is actually from their show in Utah at Murray Theatre! Believe it or not, I am one of those bobbing heads. Haha I know the video is pretty crappy quality, but I just had to post it. I mean I was there! I am probably in the video. Man, that was such a fun show. After Scary Kids Scaring Kids finished Saosin played. It was so fantastic.
I am sorry if this wasn't your cup of tea, but it is part of who I am. I seriously have such a soft spot for this type of music as strange as it sounds. I might not listen to it all that often, but it never fails to give me chills every time it happens to come on shuffle.
Tomorrow will officially be the end of finals for me. Can I get a hallelujah?! Like for real, I can't believe my brain hasn't completely melted out of my head. I would say finals have been a success based on this fact alone. Now that school is over, I am trying to figure out what to do with this much needed break. I can't really think of anything. Hopefully I will be going to some fun shows! I already have a few in mind I plan on attending. Can you say You Me & Apollo?? Oh yeah!
Other than that I am trying to find something fun to do on New Years'. I am really hoping to find something awesome considering this will probably be my last one I can celebrate for two years. I actually really enjoy New Years'. I like the traditions that come with it. It has just always been a favorite for me. I have never had some extravagant New Years' experience or anything. Honestly, I think most people have WAY to high of expectations for it. I just think celebrating the start of a new year is something worth celebrating I guess. I am pretty sure I am not making any sense. Finals have ruined me you guys. I for real think I need to just sleep for a straight week. I will let you know how that goes.
Ok, so pretty much Florence Welch is unreal. Like seriously, I wish I could be her. Her voice blows my mind, so please enjoy this song because it is fantastic.
So today has been a weird day. I think my mind is just a jumbled mess due to finals being next week, but I have been doing a lot of thinking today about coincidences. Lets just say a few things that could be called coincidences have happened today. It involves a person. That is all the detail you get. Haha
I don't believe in coincidences. I guess a better way to put it is I believe that things happen for a reason. I also believe that if something continues to keep happen, that you should do something about it. So yeah, I don't think things are just coincidence. I don't think that things continue to happen over and over for no apparent reason at all. I don't really know where I am going with this. I guess what I am trying to figure out right now is what I am going to do about this recurring coincidence that I don't think is a coincidence at all. Do I act on it, or do I leave it up to chance? The only thing about this particular situation is my time window to act on it ends tomorrow afternoon. Talk about pressure! And I'm sure it will consume all my thoughts today, so studying is going to be impossible.
As I have tried to decide what to do, I have had to think about what I believe in. So like I said, I believe that everything happens for a reason. I also believe in serendipity. Because of these two things, I have an idea of how I want to handle this situation. It scares the crap out of me, but if I put a little into the situation hopefully something good will come out of it. I guess we will see. I will keep you updated!
For this weeks Music Monday I have decided on a song from one of my all time favorite bands Thrice. To be completely honest, I didn't hear about Thrice until my junior year of high school, but after just one song I was sold. I am pretty sure the first song I ever heard by them was Deadbolt, which for some reason holds a special place in my heart. As soon as I heard it, I pretty much ran home to learn the piano outro.
The song I chose for today is The Weight, which is one of my favorite Thrice songs. This is one of those songs that you love because the lyrics are so brilliant. This has just always been a special song to me. It doesn't hold as much importance as it once did, but I still find myself falling in love with lyrics every single time. I am pretty sure I have had multiple Facebook status updates that contain the lyrics to this song. Thrice really is just brilliant. I am so sad that they aren't making music anymore, but I am grateful that I have been able to attend many of their shows and will always be able to enjoy their music.
Take the time to listen to Dustin sing this live. His voice is seriously unreal! Thrice is definitely one of those bands that when you hear them play live you just don't even know what to do with yourself. They are just freaking crazy amazing!
Whoo! It is Monday, which means it is time for another Music Monday post. Now I promised you that I wouldn't choose any more Grouplove or The North Valley songs for a while, so here is to keeping that promise.
This week I am giving Of Monsters and Men a little love, because they are also a favorite of mine. I honestly can't remember the first time I heard them. All I know is that it was sometime this past summer, and they instantly stole my heart. So here is my favorite Of Monsters and Men song at the moment.
"From Finner" by Of Monsters and Men
Remember how I said I was obsessed with names like Finley and Finner recently. Well I blame this song. I just think the collaboration of every one's voices in this band are phenomenal. I just can't stop listening to them. They are the band on your ipod that no matter what you can't skip their songs when they come up on shuffle. They are just awesome. I was actually thinking of driving to Colorado with one of my friends to see them play. They are THAT good. At least I think so. I hope you enjoy.
For each song I choose, I am going to try and find a GOOD live version of the song. I just always find a deeper respect for artists when they sound just as good live as they do on a recording.
Yesterday I promised pictures, so here are some photos of my life lately via Instagram. Enjoy!
Letter from one of my kids at work. This is why I love my job!
We had Kim's Cold-blooded Creatures come and give a presentation at work last week. After she is done giving the presentation she lets all the kids (and adults) hold all the animals. No worries, the snake was only like FORTY pounds. No big deal.
Cutest little tree frog on the planet!
The North Valley... duh
STOKED out of my mind for my new concert tee!
Mr. Skeleton Head. This is my lucky shirt. I wore it to the concert on Friday. One of the bands had black lights throughout their set. Lets just say my shirt was unreal!
Richins siblings going to church. Yeah, I know what you are thinking! We are one attractive bunch.
I did this on my other blog, so I have decided to bring it back and try it out here. As you know from my last post, music is something that is really important to me. So each week I will pick my favorite song of the moment, and tell you why I love that song. Sound good?
To start things off, I figured it would be good to pick a song from one of my favorite bands. Yes, it is a Grouplove song. The song is "Close Your Eyes and Count to Ten."
To be honest, I am still trying to figure out why I like this song so much. I mean, there is howling at the beginning...howling! And I absolutely love it. I think the thing I love about Grouplove is they always start rocking out at the perfect moment. They usually start things out nice and slow, and then out of nowhere BOOM! I think that might be why seeing them live was one of the funnest experiences I have ever had. Everyone is enjoying the music, and then it just gets crazy! It isn't like death metal crazy though. People aren't punching each other in the face, or freaking out on each other. Nothing like that. Grouplove's music is very upbeat, and just happy. I don't know. They are just awesome. I think they are genius. It probably helps that I have a crush on Christian Zucconi... and an even bigger crush on Hannah Hooper.
Just give them a listen. I will try to give you something besides Grouplove or The North Valley next week. I just couldn't help myself! It was the first post. Might as well be an absolute favorite on all levels!
I guess I should say a little bit more about the rest of my weekend. Unfortunately, nothing exciting happened after the concert on Friday. On Saturday I was planning on going to the Battle of the Bands at Muse Music Cafe to see Eli Whitney play, but I am poor and didn't have enough gas to drive to Provo. Instead, I sat at home and watched Criminal Minds. I was actually completely happy about this. I watched a very intense episode! I also figured out that if you are watching Criminal Minds and something INSANE happens at the end of an episode, you HAVE to go get ice cream in order to watch the next episode. You seriously just have to. So that is exactly what I did! It was fantastic.
That is pretty much all I did. Besides that, I am just enjoying the awkward situations I seem to create for myself on a daily basis. I seriously just have to laugh at the things that happen to me sometimes. Example for today... accidentally adding someone who you have never met on Facebook. Then finding out that out of everyone you could have accidentally added, you added someone that is playing at the concert you are going to this weekend. I honestly don't even know how these things happened to me, but I am just rolling with it!
